County supervisor declines to seek reelection after voting conspiracies, citing family

Maricopa County Supervisor Clint Hickman won't seek reelection in November, a decision that blows the race for his seat wide open and adds to the list of election officials leaving their posts amid a wave of unfounded voting conspiracies and threats.

Hickman currently represents District 4, a conservative-leaning area that spans most of the northwest Valley, including Wickenburg, Surprise and Litchfield Park. It also covers nearly all of Peoria, the northern half of Buckeye and parts of Glendale, Avondale and Goodyear.

He has held his seat for more than a decade and was among the county supervisors who faced false allegations of election fraud following the 2020 and 2022 elections.

His announcement makes him the second Republican county supervisor to decline to run for reelection this cycle. Supervisor Bill Gates announced last year that he wouldn't run again for his seat, months after he publicly shared that he had been diagnosed with PTSD as a result of election-related harassment.

Hickman said Thursday that he hopes to spend more time with his wife, children and friends. He said his family has been "gracious and unselfish" as he has "made decisions that brought significant attention and had profound impact."

"To my constituents, thank you for trusting me to serve our West Valley," he said in a statement. "Never forget the power you have as voters to choose your representatives. They can be people of courage and integrity who share your values and put the wellbeing of the community first."

Who is Clint Hickman?

Hickman was first appointed to the board in 2013 after longtime former Supervisor Max Wilson retired. He was then elected in 2014, and reelected in 2020.

He is a fourth-generation Arizonan and grew up in the West Valley. Hickman has long worked as the vice president of sales and marketing at Hickman's Family Farms, which his family has owned and operated since the 1940s. The company is Arizona's largest egg producer.

Hickman served as chairman of the Board of Supervisors during the 2020 presidential election. In the days after the contest, he rejected overtures from allies of former President Donald Trump to stop vote tallying and delay certifying election results.

Dozens of angry people later protested outside his home, incensed by false allegations of election fraud. His wife and children were inside. Months after the presidential race, election conspiracists falsely claimed a fire at his family's farms had destroyed ballots from the 2020 general election.

Last year, he took the stand in federal court to face Mark Rissi of Hiawatha, Iowa, who was sentenced to 2 ½ years in prison after pleading guilty to making threats targeting Hickman and former Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich.

Rissi told Hickman in a voicemail that he and others were going to "lynch" him for "lying" about the 2020 election results, per court documents.

"I certainly hope that this is over for me and my family," Hickman said after the sentencing. "I don't know if it is."

What happens to the race for District 4?

Hickman had filed a statement of interest for his seat and was widely expected to run for reelection. But three other Republicans have indicated interest in fighting for the seat in the July primary.

Robert Canterbury is a security officer with the Maricopa County Judicial Courts. He previously served as sergeant-at-arms for the Arizona Republican Party and worked as a security officer for Trump’s campaign headquarters in Washington, D.C.

Jack Hastings is a teacher at West Point Elementary. He was elected to Surprise City Council in 2020 and reelected in 2022 with a platform focused on fiscal conservatism and supporting law enforcement.

Bob Branch is a professor at Grand Canyon University. He previously ran for superintendent of public instruction and told The Republic that he intended to run for a seat in the Arizona Senate before swapping to a campaign for county supervisor. He also currently serves on the Maricopa County Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission.

Sasha Hupka covers county government and elections for The Arizona Republic. Do you have a tip? Reach her at sasha.hupka@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @SashaHupka. Follow her on Instagram or Threads: @sashahupkasnaps.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Maricopa County Supervisor Clint Hickman won't seek reelection